Title- The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue
Author- VE Schwab
Series- N/A
Published- 2020
Page Count- 560 pages
Publishing House- Titan Books
Genre- Historical Gothic Fiction
Rating- 4/5 stars
Rating- 4/5 stars
About the Author
Victoria “V.E.” Schwab is the #1 NYT, USA, and Indie bestselling author of more than a dozen books, including Vicious, the Shades of Magic series, and This Savage Song. Her work has received critical acclaim, been featured by EW and The New York Times, been translated into more than a dozen languages, and been optioned for TV and Film. The Independent calls her the “natural successor to Diana Wynne Jones” and touts her “enviable, almost Gaimanesque ability to switch between styles, genres, and tones.”
Taken from VE Schwab's website
Plot
France, 1714: in a moment of desperation, a young woman makes a Faustian bargain to live forever-and is cursed to be forgotten by everyone she meets.
Thus begins the extraordinary life of Addie LaRue, and a dazzling adventure that will play out across centuries and continents, across history and art, as a young woman learns how far she will go to leave her mark on the world.
But everything changes when, after nearly 300 years, Addie stumbles across a young man in a hidden bookstore, and he remembers her name.
In the vein of The Time Traveler's Wife and Life After Life, The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue is New York Times bestselling author V. E. Schwab's #1 New York Times Bestselling Author genre-defying tour de force.
Taken from Goodreads
Opinions
I have had a very mixed relationship with VE Schwab's books. I have read quite a few, and while I thought they were good, I didn't feel wowed by any of them. I even got rid of my signed copy of This Savage Song as I never saw myself continuing the series. I am now very annoyed at past me for being so ruthless with my collection. I saw Addie LaRue floating around and for a while I wasn't bothered, that was until I found it it was a Faust retelling. I knew then I had to give her another chance. It then doesn't come as a surprise that I have had my faith restored in her as a writer.
Normally, the pacing of a book is a big factor in how much I enjoy it. I enjoy quite fast paced books. This was not a fast paced book, however the slower pacing really worked in it's favour. You could feel the agony that Addie was going through as you were almost going through it too. There were times when it bothered me a bit, but I found myself unable to put this book down and desperate to finish it.
I've never been one to comment on or appreciate good writing, which is odd as I'm studying creative writing at university, but VE Schwab's writing was truly beautiful. She just has a way with words and I'm jealous as I don't have that way with words. The descriptions were beautiful without being too much. I cannot put into words how much I loved the writing in this one. I am now tempted to go back and read more of her work to see if it's just this book or if I have been stupid about her as a writer.
I think the main reason I adored this book was the relationship between Henry and Addie. It was beautiful. I was rooting for it from the beginning. I'm not normally one to enjoy romance in books, but this one was so good. I think it might be a new favourite couple for me. It goes without saying that I have a lot of feelings about this relationship.
This leads me on nicely to my final point in that I was a bit disappointed in the ending. I found it a bit underwhelming that Addie went with Luc. It was heartwarming that Henry wrote her story. I would have loved for them to have cheated Luc in someway and to find a way to stay together. I feel that would have been a more satisfying ending. Maybe there will be some kind of short story about Addie and Luc together or Addie destroying Luc as he deserves it. It was just sad that such a good book, which had potential to be a five star book, had a flop of an ending.
Carenza :) x
